It's an intriguing place TC. You read. You drink. You go back over things. Drink some more. New realizations. Things take on new meanings. Tea ware and teas are being sent from all sorts of intriguing places, but few people outside TC will understand what you're up to (at least in most western countries).

Welcome to the underground that is tea! Exquisite and hidden in plain sight!

Hi Bliss! Thank you for the intriguing welcome! I'm ready to begin my journey into this new world I've discovered. I believe you are right. My husband is confused already and it has only been 5 days. He doesn't understand why a regular kettle is not going to meet my needs. I've got a lot of explaining to do.

tea girl wrote:The white tea I had been having became unavailable and I was forced to search for a replacement.

For me, it was difficulty finding my SeaDyke Ti Kuan Yin, bewilderment at the variety of offerings in my local Asian markets, some disappointing random purchases, that prompted my tea journey. I've learned more here than from most of my other internet stops along the way. Enjoy!

No need for explanations, if you are looking to replace a cheap kettle made of plastic! In that case, just showcase how bad it is!

Boil water in a stainless steel saucepan on the stove (even better if you have access to enamel or a Pyrex glass bottle) and also boil some in the plastic kettle. Serve the plain water side by side (in identical cups for extra effect) and try it out. One of them is going to taste like poison in comparison. Terrible and enlightening experience. You'll wonder why you haven't isolated that taste earlier since it's been everywhere.

Have your husband and yourself go through that test. I'd be VERY surprised if you don't taste any difference. If you have time, try this with both tap water and some fancier bottled water. I have not done the latter test, but should probably do that soon.

Personally I just use a stainless steel kettle on the stove. When I need cooler water, I let the water cool in a mug or pitcher before pouring it into the brewing vessel.

tea girl wrote:The white tea I had been having became unavailable and I was forced to search for a replacement.

For me, it was difficulty finding my SeaDyke Ti Kuan Yin, bewilderment at the variety of offerings in my local Asian markets, some disappointing random purchases, that prompted my tea journey. I've learned more here than from most of my other internet stops along the way. Enjoy!

Thank you Debunix. That is very interesting. How did you initially hear of SeaDyke Ti Kuan Yim? I've never heard of it before. What category of tea would you put it in?

bliss wrote:No need for explanations, if you are looking to replace a cheap kettle made of plastic! In that case, just showcase how bad it is!

Boil water in a stainless steel saucepan on the stove (even better if you have access to enamel or a Pyrex glass bottle) and also boil some in the plastic kettle. Serve the plain water side by side (in identical cups for extra effect) and try it out. One of them is going to taste like poison in comparison. Terrible and enlightening experience. You'll wonder why you haven't isolated that taste earlier since it's been everywhere.

Have your husband and yourself go through that test. I'd be VERY surprised if you don't taste any difference. If you have time, try this with both tap water and some fancier bottled water. I have not done the latter test, but should probably do that soon.

Personally I just use a stainless steel kettle on the stove. When I need cooler water, I let the water cool in a mug or pitcher before pouring it into the brewing vessel.

EDIT: Made corrections to the text for clarity

Hi Bliss,That sounds like a very good way to tell the difference. Before we were married, my husband would drink anything from anything. I'm really not trying to replace a kettle. I'm looking for the convenience the variable temperature kettle affords. I need to get my water to 175. Actually, I am not having a hard time reducing the temperature. I've been pouring water in a cup and taking its temp until it reaches 175 and then placing the tea & infuser in the cup. I am very health conscious. I have changed him in that respect. We have a Brita but I have always wanted a reverse-osmosis filter. I wouldn't boil water in plastic. That is why this search is so difficult. The kettle I like is lined with Teflon. I think I am leaning toward the goose-necked Bonavita based on the comments on this forum. My husband is a huge tea drinker. Nothing loose, he likes the pyramid bags in Lyon's Original Blend Tea. He drinks about 6 cups/day. I only drink 3.

tea girl wrote:How did you initially hear of SeaDyke Ti Kuan Yim? I've never heard of it before. What category of tea would you put it in?

Ti Kuan Yin or Tie Guan Yin is a famous type of oolong tea, traditionally a dark roasted tea, but now often a very delicate and floral green oolong. SeaDyke is just a brand of TKY, one that came in a very consistent package for the several decades I've been drinking it. It's one of the first teas I drank when I started to branch out from the herbal teas that were always available at the co-op when I was in college, and it was a tea recommended by my father's chinese calligraphy buddy. I could always recognize it when I had the right thing, and if it weren't for my local international market running out of it, I might not ever have branched out from it. I owe Global Market quite a debt for encouraging my tea explorations, if quite indirectly!

tea girl wrote:How did you initially hear of SeaDyke Ti Kuan Yim? I've never heard of it before. What category of tea would you put it in?

Ti Kuan Yin or Tie Guan Yin is a famous type of oolong tea, traditionally a dark roasted tea, but now often a very delicate and floral green oolong. SeaDyke is just a brand of TKY, one that came in a very consistent package for the several decades I've been drinking it. It's one of the first teas I drank when I started to branch out from the herbal teas that were always available at the co-op when I was in college, and it was a tea recommended by my father's chinese calligraphy buddy. I could always recognize it when I had the right thing, and if it weren't for my local international market running out of it, I might not ever have branched out from it. I owe Global Market quite a debt for encouraging my tea explorations, if quite indirectly!

I guess our journey started in a similar way. I remember drinking a Chinese oolong when I was little. I seem to remember we bought it in a Chinese restaurant. It was delicious. I remember it being a dark amber color.